BolognaBookPlus focuses rights

BolognaBookPlus opened its 2026 program by drilling into how rights deals are actually built, from book options to shopping agreements and licensing terms. (publishingperspectives.com) The session ran on Sunday, April 12, one day before the Bologna Children’s Book Fair opened on April 13, and it was billed by BolognaBookPlus as “How to Sell Rights and Understand Licensing in Children’s Books.” BolognaBookPlus itself runs April 13 to 16 inside the larger Bologna fair. (bolognachildrensbookfair.com 1) (bolognachildrensbookfair.com 2) BolognaBookPlus is the general-trade arm of the Bologna Children’s Book Fair, now in its sixth year and organized with the Italian Publishers Association. The fair says BolognaBookPlus brings together publishers, agents, authors, illustrators and rights professionals focused on adult trade publishing as well as crossover business. (bolognachildrensbookfair.com) (publishersweekly.com) In publishing, “rights” are the permissions that let one company sell a book in another language, territory or format, and “shopping agreements” are short-term deals that let film or television producers pitch a property before buying it outright. Publishing Perspectives reported that the opening seminar focused on those mechanics rather than broad trend talk. (publishingperspectives.com) That emphasis fits the structure of the Bologna fair in 2026. The event is running as a three-part marketplace: the Bologna Children’s Book Fair, BolognaBookPlus for general publishing, and Bologna Licensing Trade Fair/Kids for brands and subsidiary rights. (bolognachildrensbookfair.com) The fair is also selling Bologna as a rights hub across formats, not just a children’s book showcase. Its Rights Centre says it hosts 200 professionals from around the world, and its TV and Film Rights Centre is designed to connect publishers with screen producers. (bolognachildrensbookfair.com 1) (bolognachildrensbookfair.com 2) The licensing side has expanded in the same direction. The fair’s International Kids Licensing Days were renamed International Kids Licensing & Media Days for April 13 to 15, with organizers saying the new name reflects stories moving across multiple formats. (bolognachildrensbookfair.com) Bologna’s own preview for 2026 describes the event as a “global hub for copyright exchange” across publishing, multimedia, licensing, illustration and animation. That language matches an opening program built around contracts, because the business on the floor depends on who controls which rights, for how long, and in which markets. (bolognachildrensbookfair.com) The broader fair is large enough to support that focus: Bologna Children’s Book Fair says its 2025 edition drew 33,318 trade visitors from more than 100 countries and territories, and the 2026 program includes dedicated areas for comics, games, television and film rights. BolognaBookPlus added new tracks this year including a Designer Studio, a WritersLab and a second Artificial Intelligence Summit on April 14. (bolognachildrensbookfair.com) (publishersweekly.com) So the opening message in Bologna was less about hype than paperwork. Before books become translations, audiobooks, games or screen projects, somebody has to decide who gets the option, who gets to shop it, and who keeps the rights. (publishingperspectives.com)